Some people make you feel comfortable when they are around. You spend an hour with them and feel you are already close friends. They are always good talkers. Here are several skills that good talkers have in common. If you follow the skills, they'll help you put people at their ease, and make friends with them quickly. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    First of all, good talkers ask questions. Almost anyone, no matter how shy he is, will answer a question. One well-known businesswoman says，“At business lunches, I always ask people what they did that morning. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}” From there you can move on to other matters—sometimes to really personal questions. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Second, once good talkers have asked questions, they listen to the answers. Your questions should have a point and help to tell what sort of person you are talking to. And to find out, you really have to listen carefully. Real listening at least means some things. If someone sticks to one topic, you can take it as a fact that he's really interested in it. Real listening also means not just listening to words, but to tones of voice. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Finally, good talkers know well how to “say goodbye”. If you're saying goodbye, you may give him a firm handshake and say, “I've really enjoyed meeting you.” {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Let people know what you feel, and they may walk away, happy and satisfied.

A. It's polite to listen to others with a smile.

B. You'd better change the subject if the voice sounds dull.

C. Don't be afraid to say so if you want to see that person again.

D. Common as the question is, it will get things going.

E. You can become a popular person.

F. And how he answers will let you know how far you can go.

G. These people have something in common.

    Living and dealing with kids can be a tough job these days, but living and dealing with parents can be even tougher.

    If I have learned anything in my 16 years, it is that communication is very important, both when you disagree and when you get along. With any relationship, you need to let other person know how you are feeling. If you are not able to communicate, you drift apart. When you are mad at your parents, or anyone else, not talking to them doesn't solve anything.

    Communication begins with the concerns of another. It means that you can't just come home from school, go up to your room and ignore everyone. Even if you just say “Hi”, and see how their day was for five minutes, it is better than nothing.

    If you looked up the word “communication” in a dictionary, it would say “the exchange of ideas, the conveyance （表达）of information, correspondence （通信）, means of communication: a letter or a message”. To maintain (保持) a good relationship, you must keep communication strong. Let people know how you feel, even if it's just by writing a note.

    When dealing with parents, you always have to make them feel good about how they are doing as a parent. If you are trying to make them see something as you see it, tell them that you'll listen to what they have to say, but ask them politely to listen to you. Yelling or walking away only makes the situation worse.

    This is an example: one night, Sophie went to a street party with her friends. She knew she had to be home by midnight after the fireworks, but she didn't feel she could just ask to go home. That would be rude. After all, they had been nice enough to take her along with them. Needless to say, she was late getting home. Her parents were mad at first, not when Sophie explained why she was late, they weren't as mad and let the incident go. Communication is the key factor here. If Sophie's parents had not been willing to listen, Sophie would have been in a lot of trouble.

    Communication isn't a one-way deal: it goes both ways. Just remember: if you get into a situation like Sophie's, telling the other person how you feel-listening is the key factor to communication.

    Low-Cost Gifts for Mother's Day

    Gift No. 1

    Offer to be your mother's health friend. Promise to be there for any and all doctor's visits whether a disease or a regular medical check -up. Most mothers always say no need, another set of eyes and ears is always a good idea at a doctor's visit. The best part? This one is free.

    Gift No. 2

    Help your mother organize al1 of her medical records, which include the test results and medical information. Put them all in one place. Be sure to make a list of all of her medicines and what times she takes them. “Having all this information in one place could end up saving your mother's life,” Dr. Marie Savard said.

    Gift No. 3

    Enough sleep is connected to general health conditions. “Buy your mother cotton sheets and comfortable pillows to encourage better sleep.” Savard said. “We know that good sleep is very important to our health.”

    Gift No. 4

    Some gift companies such as Presents for Purpose allow you to pay it forward this Mother's Day by picking gifts in which 10 percent of the price you pay goes to a charity (慈善机构).Gift givers can choose from a wide variety of useful but inexpensive things many of which are “green”—and then choose a meaningful charity from a list. When your mother gets the gift, she will be told that she has helped the chosen charity.

    I remember the day when I first learned to ride a bike. It was a frightening, yet fun experience. My granddad was the one who taught me, and he helped me when I got hurt. The first time I got on a bike, I had no idea what I was doing, and just about everything went wrong. My granddad told me to just put my feet on the pedals and start, pedaling(骑自行车). He also told me he would hold onto the back of the bike the whole time, yet he didn't.

    As soon as I started trying to balance myself, he let go. I happened to look back just then.  I was scared to death that I was going to fall and hurt myself. When I was scared, my mind went blank from pedaling, and I just wanted off. I forgot how to use the brakes(车闸) and fell right off the bike. My granddad kept encouraging me to get up and try again, and after about 15 minutes, I finally stopped crying, got up and tried again.

    As soon as I started pedaling again, my pants got caught in the chain, and I fell flat on my face and hit my nose. Since that happened, my granddad decided to call it a day and try again the next morning. The next morning I woke up bright and early, and was very eager to try to ride my bike. My nose felt better, so I wasn't that afraid of falling anymore.

    Though I knew there were a lot of difficulties on the way to mastering the skills in riding a bike, l believed I could do well with my granddad's help. After all, riding a bike was what I wanted to do eagerly.

History Fair Competition

    Understanding history is vital to understanding ourselves as a people and as a nation.

    History is much more than the study of dusty old objects and events long past. It is an essential part of who we are today and who we will become. Thornton fiddle School History Fair Competition makes understanding history exciting, engaging, and fun！

    This Year's Theme

    All participants must address how communication or transportation technology has promoted the quality of life for Americans throughout history. To many people, technology means computers, hand-held devices, or vehicles that travel to distant planets. However, technology is also the application of scientific knowledge to solve a problem, touching lives in countless ways.

    Individuals or groups may enter one of the following categories:

    Performance

    Documentary（纪实作品）

    Essay Writing

    Category Requirements

    Performance: A dramatic presentation of the topic no more than 10 minutes long. If special clothes are used, they should truly represent a given period.

    Documentary: A visual presentation（such as a video, slide show, or computer project）no more than 10 minutes long. A desktop computer, screen, projector, and loudspeakers will be available. Students must provide their presentations on CDs before Friday, March 23.

    Essay Writing: An academic paper of 2, 000 to 2, 500 words. No illustrations（图解）are allowed. Please do not include covers. A list of references must be included.

    Important Dates

    January 5      Submit a topic proposal to your history teacher. The teacher may require a second proposal if the first is off-topic or unclear.

    February 5      Submit a first draft of your essay, performance script（剧本）, or documentary highlights.

    February 19    A committee of teachers will evaluate materials and give opinions. Students then have an opportunity to improve their products.

    March 9          Submit a final draft of your essay.

    March 15          Performance and documentary committee preview

    March 24          Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition

    7:00A. M-9:00A. M          Participants signing in at the gym

    10:00A. M. -6:00PM.        Competition and judges' review

    7:00P.M.                   Awards ceremony and picnic

    For Kim Duffy, sending away her teenage daughter was the best hope for saving the girl's life.

    Corinne, then 17, had been struggling with bulimia (贪食症) and anorexia (厌食症) for more than five years. Duffy and her husband, Terry, found a residential facility in Virginia, and Corinne signed on for a two-month stay in the summer of 2009.

    Today, Corinne's healthy and pursuing a master's degree in Colorado. She and her parents believe the holistic (整体) approach and individualized focus were key to her recovery. And they know they had access to unique resources. "We were fortunate," says Duffy. "We could pay for everything."

    But many can't. According to a report released in November 2014 by the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, between 600, 000 and one million Canadians suffer from an eating disorder. Public in patient programs often won't admit patients until they're in life-threatening condition. Private clinics often have a long waitlists and high costs-at Homewood, in Guelph, Ont., a room is $ 305 to $360 per day.

    The Duffs' struggle led then to connect other families with the quality of care they received in the United Sates. In late 2013, hey founded the WaterStone Clinic, a private eating disorder center in Toronto.

    Since the facility opened, 170 clients have received treatment. They take yoga, do art therapy and participate in meal preparation, building real-life skills with a support team. Programs run weekdays from 8 a. m. to 2 p. m., and notably, so far WaterStone has no waiting list.

    But this approach is costly: approximately $650 per day. Realizing that the price tag puts WaterStone out of reach for many, the Duffys created the WaterStone Foundation-a charity that provides aid to patients who can't afford treatment the following year. Candidates are assessed by two committees that make a decision based on clinical and financial need. Since 2014, the foundation has helped 100 people.

    Duffy also wants to change the public system. In June of this year, the foundation awarded ＄170, 000 to four Ontario hopitals offering creative treatment to eating disorder patients. "Yes, people need private treatment," she says, "but it's important to help out on a broader scale, too."